The Fukaros Familia, starting from DanMachi.

Chapter 198 Maria's Orphanage

"Sister Robin!"

A blond half-elf child, whose gender was indiscernible, was the first to spot them. He immediately ran over like a little rabbit, stood in front of the robin, and looked up at her with his clear eyes.

"Hey, Little Road, don't run around! — Oh, it's Sister Robin!"

"Lay, what's wrong!?"

At that moment, the voices of other children also came from deep within the church.

The first to run out was a human boy with brown hair, followed by a dog-woman girl with short blonde hair and a little human boy with brown curly hair.

Upon seeing the robin, they all cheered in unison and rushed towards her like a flock of birds returning to their nest.

"Xiao Lu, Lai Yi, Fina, Osin, have you missed your sister?"

The robin smiled tenderly and knelt down to pat each child's head.

"Yes, we really want Robin's sister!"

The human child in the lead, Ray, said loudly with a happy expression, but his eyes couldn't help but dart towards the candy and cake that the robin was holding.

"Take it and share it with everyone!"

The robin chuckled and handed the fruit, cake, and candy to the four children, who then distributed them to the dozen or so children who continued to emerge from behind.

"Yay, Sister Robin is the best!"

The children erupted in thunderous cheers, excitedly gathering together to share this sweet surprise.

"Hello, my name is Xiaolu."

At this moment, the golden-haired half-elf child who had received the candy left the crowd and came to Fenyu, greeting him with pure curiosity in his eyes.

"Hello, Xiaolu," Fenyu replied with a smile.

"Robin, why didn't Tifa come today?"

The little dog-woman, Fina, asked the robin while licking her candy.

"Well, Tifa has other things to do today, but she brought you a new friend."

After saying that, the robin smiled and pointed to Burnt Feather.

"?"

The human child, Lai, immediately focused his gaze on Fen Yu. He looked him up and down, then suddenly seemed to remember something. His eyes widened, and he excitedly rushed to Fen Yu, his voice rising eight octaves with excitement: "Big brother with white hair, you...you're Xin Yan?! That Level 2 adventurer?! The leader of Sister Robin's guild?!"

"Yes, it's me. Hello everyone."

Fen Yu smiled and habitually reached out to stroke the child's hair.

"Wow—! It really is Xin Yan himself!"

"That war game?!"

Ray let out a loud shout.

All the children, whether they were eating cake or sharing candy, rushed towards Fenyu and surrounded him instantly.

"We also watched the war game, you were amazing, so cool!"

"Yeah, yeah, he's even more handsome than the heroes in storybooks."

"Big brother, can I borrow your weapon for a moment?"

One particularly bold child even reached out and tried to pull at the sword at Fen Yu's waist.

Led by a boy named Ray, the children quickly formed a protective circle.

The orc girl excitedly joined in, but the half-elf child, Xiaolu, remained unchanged, standing on the periphery, staring blankly at the Burning Feathers being overwhelmed by the children.

"Hey, you can't play with this, it's too dangerous."

Fen Yu was both amused and exasperated by the crowd of enthusiastic fans, and could only raise his longsword high with a helpless expression.

Seeing the Fenyu surrounded by a dense crowd, the robin beside it finally couldn't help but cover its mouth and chuckle softly.

Hearing the noise outside, which was comparable to that of a vegetable market, a middle-aged human woman wearing an apron walked out from the depths of the church.

When she saw the robin surrounded by children, a warm smile immediately appeared on her face.

"You've come to deliver things to the children again, Miss Robin. It's such a bother for you."

"How could that be, Lady Maria?"

The robin shook its head and said softly, "There's not much I can do; this is just a small token of my appreciation."

She knew very well that what she had done was insignificant, and that it was not she who truly supported the orphanage.

"Children, don't cause trouble for your older brother, spread out."

Ms. Maria's gaze fell on Fenyu, who was surrounded by children and being scratched around like a giant cat scratching board.

She clearly recognized the rising star in Orario and immediately stepped in to help him out.

The children listened to Mary very well. As soon as they heard her speak, they scattered immediately, but still looked at her from afar with eyes full of admiration and curiosity.

Fen Yu breathed a sigh of relief, straightened his somewhat disheveled clothes, stepped forward, and paid his sincere respects to the lady.

"Hello, I suppose you must be Lady Maria. I've often heard the robin mention you. I am Fenyu, the leader of the Fukaros Familia."

Fen Yu's tone carried a hint of respect.

He would always admire a woman who single-handedly raised more than twenty orphans and supported an entire orphanage, no matter what, even if she was just an ordinary middle-aged woman.

"Hello, Mr. Fenyu."

Maria responded politely, with a hint of good-natured teasing in her eyes, "Now, there are probably very few people in all of Orario who don't know you."

It was too impolite to talk while standing outside, so Maria immediately smiled and invited the two of them into the church.

In a room deep inside the church, which had been converted into a restaurant, the three sat facing each other.

Although there are some old, faded paint marks on the walls and pillars, the long-used magic stone lamps and candlesticks create a warm feeling called "life".

Around them, more than twenty children stood quietly, watching the adults talk with curious eyes.

Especially beside Maria, the half-elf child Xiaolu and the orc girl Fina held her arms on either side, their expressions full of dependence.

Every child here calls her "Mom".

As Fen Yu sipped his lukewarm barley tea, he observed everything.

He had heard from the robin that Maria single-handedly supported the orphanage, living a lively yet simple life with the children every day.

In the labyrinthine city of Orario, it is said that countless children are born from the union of adventurers.

These children are not necessarily the fruit of a couple's lifelong love; sometimes they are merely the result of a moment of passion, or the product of a prostitute's unexpected pregnancy.

Adventurers who venture into dungeons often die young, leaving behind these helpless women and children.

Some of these families did not raise the orphans left behind, but instead abandoned them in the slums of Daedalus Street.

Therefore, in this forgotten corner, there are many homeless children, and the orphanages are not limited to the one in front of us.

According to the robin, Maria was originally an ordinary citizen without a family after her adventurer's partner died.

She and her lover had no children, but when she saw a baby soaked in the cold rain in this slum, she felt a deep empathy and could not bear to see him die.

So she went around protecting these abandoned children one by one, eventually forming the large family she has today.

Of course, it was absolutely impossible for her to support the needs of more than twenty children on her own.

What truly sustains this place is the kindness of the goddesses of Orario.

Whether it's Freya, Loki, Demeter, Hephaestus, or Hathor—these goddesses with their diverse personalities seem to be more attentive to the difficulties of this remote place than the gods, and are more likely to lend a helping hand.

It was precisely because of the support of these goddesses from the highest-ranking families that Maria was able to barely keep the orphanage afloat on her own.

Of course, there are also kind-hearted adventurers like the robin who visit these children with food and toys, making life here peaceful yet full of surprises.

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